Average total lifetime tax bill now £734,240

New TaxPayers' Alliance analysis has revealed the size of the average family's tax bill over the course of a lifetime. Among the key findings in the report are:

Over a lifetime, an average household will pay £734,240 (in 2013-14 prices) in direct and indirect taxes, an increase of 2.3 per cent on last year (£717,650)

This is equivalent to the total income of a household over 19 years

Over a lifetime, an average household in the bottom 20 per cent of earners will pay £282,545 in direct and indirect taxes, whereas a household in the top 20 per cent of earners will pay £1,488,275 in direct and indirect taxes

The NHS' botched hoarding of tamiflu stock cost £49 million - the total lifetime contribution to the Treasury of 66 families

There were £5.1 billion in "departmental losses" in 2013-14, equivalent to the lifetime tax bill of 6,945 families

Commenting on the research, Jonathan Isaby, Chief Executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said:

"This new analysis shows just how heavy the burden of taxation falls on each and every family across Britain, pushing up the cost of living. Every arm of local and central government must redouble its efforts to root out unnecessary spending and inefficiency in everything they do, so that not a penny of this extraordinary bill is wasted. Britain's tax bill is too high - it must come down, and that means cutting out wasteful spending."